In Brief
Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company sought to levy additional surcharge on captive consumers under the Electricity Act, 2003. The Supreme Court held that captive consumers—who own and operate their own generating plants and transmission lines—are exempt from additional surcharge. The Court reasoned that Section 42(4) applies only to consumers receiving supply by regulatory permission; captive consumers have a statutory right under Section 9 requiring no permission. Additionally, captive and ordinary consumers form distinct classes: captive consumers invest substantially in infrastructure, while ordinary consumers do not. Imposing identical surcharges would be discriminatory. The Court dismissed the appeal and directed amounts recovered to be adjusted against future wheeling charges.
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